Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Yesterday, May 5th, President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals for key administration posts at the State Department: Ellen O. Tauscher, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security (T) and Andrew J. Shapiro, Assistant Secretary for Political-Military Affairs (PM).

Ellen O. Tauscher, Nominee for Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security

Ellen O. Tauscher is a seven term member of Congress serving California’s 10th Congressional District. She chairs the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee and the New Democrat Coalition. Throughout her career, Congresswoman Tauscher has been a leader on national security and nonproliferation issues. During her tenure, she has introduced legislation to increase and expand our nation’s nonproliferation programs, strengthen arms control regimes and provide our troops with the support and equipment they deserve. In addition, she has improved our nation’s missile defenses by conducting greater oversight of the Missile Defense Agency and making sure that our military has fully tested and reliable systems. She also represents two of the nation’s nuclear laboratories, Livermore and the California campus of Sandia, as well as Travis Air Force Base. She is a member of the NATO Parliamentary assembly where she serves as the Vice Chair for the Future Security and Defense Capabilities Subcommittee of the Defense and Security Committee.

Before winning a Congressional seat in 1996, she worked as an investment banker. At age 25, she was one of the first women to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in early childhood education from Seton Hall University.

Andrew J. Shapiro, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Political-Military Affairs
Andrew Shapiro is currently a Senior Advisor to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Prior to joining the State Department with the Secretary, he served from 2001 to 2009 as Senator Clinton's Senior Defense and Foreign Policy Advisor. In this position, he was Senator Clinton's primary policy advisor on national security issues including Senator Clinton's work on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Previously, Mr. Shapiro was counsel to the Justice Department's International Competition Policy Advisory Committee, and was an associate at the Washington, DC law firm Covington & Burling.

He received a B.A. cum laude with honors distinction in Diplomatic History from the University of Pennsylvania and a joint law/master's in international affairs degree from Columbia University where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. Prior to attending law and graduate school, he worked as a senior research assistant at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Andrew Shapiro is recipient of the Gold Star Wives of America Appreciation Award and the National Guard Association’s Patrick Henry Award. He is a member of the Council of Foreign Relations and the International Institute of Strategic Studies.